The US Department of Energy selected Oklo Inc. as one of five companies to negotiate under its Surplus Plutonium Utilization Program, a initiative aimed at converting Cold War-era plutonium stockpiles into usable fuel for next-generation reactors. The other four companies selected alongside Oklo are Exodys Energy, SHINE Technologies, Standard Nuclear, and Flibe Energy.
The newcleo connection and a potential $2B bet
Oklo’s selection doesn’t exist in a vacuum. The company established a strategic agreement with newcleo, a European reactor developer, back on October 17, 2025. The partnership is designed to develop US-based advanced fuel fabrication facilities that could serve both companies’ reactor fleets.
Here’s the number that matters: newcleo has signaled it could invest up to $2 billion in US infrastructure as part of the collaboration. That figure remains contingent on final agreements and regulatory approvals.
Oklo CEO Jacob DeWitte framed the surplus material as “bridge fuel” for reactors, a term that neatly captures the strategy: use what’s already sitting in government storage to get advanced reactors running while longer-term fuel supply chains are still being built.
